Economic and Social Council Elects Members to UNAIDS, World Food Programme Boards, Outlines Distribution of Bureau Assignments, Invites Organization as Observer

The Economic and Social Council today adopted a decision (document E/2016/L.3), by which it invited the intergovernmental organization International Network for Bamboo and Rattan to participate on a continuing basis in its deliberations, in accordance with rule 79 of its procedural guidelines.

The Council elected Sven Jürgenson (Estonia) and Jürg Lauber (Switzerland) as Vice-Presidents of the body for 2016.

It elected Switzerland to the Programme Coordinating Board of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) for the term beginning on 1 January 2016 and expiring on 31 December 2018.  It postponed the election of two members from the Western European and other States for the three-year term.

The Council also elected Panama to the Executive Board of the World Food Programme (WFP) to complete the remainder of the term of office — 1 January 2016 to 31 December 2017 — following Guatemala’s resignation.

Action was postponed on the draft decision entitled “Distribution of seats among the eight experts nominated by Member States to the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues” (document E/2016/L.2).

Turning to the Bureau’s division of responsibilities for the 2016 session, the President informed the Council that the high-level segment and the high-level political forum on sustainable development, as well as the organizational session regarding the Council’s work programme would be under his responsibility as President, while the operational activities for development segment would fall under the purview of the Vice-President from Argentina, María Cristina Perceval.

The integration segment would be the responsibility of Vice-President Sven Jürgenson (Estonia), and the humanitarian affairs segment would be the responsibility of Vice-President Jürg Lauber (Switzerland).  Finally, the coordination and management meetings would be the responsibility of Vice-President Frederick Musiiwa Makamure Shava (Zimbabwe).